Richard Nelson Current is a widely recognized Lincoln expert and American Civil War scholar who was a University Distinguished Professor of History at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro from 1966 to 1983 and also served as the Head of the Department of History and Political Science of UNCG from 1955-1960.

The Richard Current Papers date from 1930 to 2003 and consist largely of his correspondence as well as manuscripts of his writings. The collection includes materials pertaining to his career as an author, professor, and historian.

Richard Nelson Current is a globally recognized Lincoln scholar, author and American Civil War historian. During the course of his career, Current has authored or co-authored over 15 books and has written dozens of articles published in journals, encyclopedias, and dictionaries, and has written over 300 book reviews. Among his various faculty positions, Richard Current has served as head of the Department of History and Political Science at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro from 1955-1960, was a University Distinguished Professor of History at UNCG from 1966 to 1983, and throughout his career has provided numerous guest lectures in cities across the globe.

Current was born to Park Curry Current and Anna (Christiansen) Current in Colorado Springs, Colorado on October 5, 1912. On December 20, 1937, he married Rose M. Bonar and together they had two children. Their daughter, Annabelle was born in 1943 and their son, Dana, was born in 1946.

Current received his B.A. from Oberlin College in 1934, holds a M.A. from Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, a Ph. D. from the University of Wisconsin, and an honorary M.A. degree from Oxford University. Standing among his many awards and achievements, Richard Current was honored with the Oliver Max Gardner Award in 1960 for outstanding academic and public service.

In addition to his scholarly occupations, Richard Current was highly involved with several noteworthy organizations. These include, but are not limited to, The Abraham Lincoln Association, the Civil War Round Table, the Conference on European Problems, the Historical Society of North Carolina, the Mississippi Valley Historical Association, and the Southern Historical Association.

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Acquisition Note:
Gift of Richard Current in February, 2002.

Preferred Citation: [Identification of item], Richard Current Papers, Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives, The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, NC, USA.

Scope and Contents: This collection documents the career, writings, and activities of Richard Nelson Current. It consists of professional and personal correspondence, original handwritten and typescript manuscripts of his writings, lectures and book reviews, as well as clippings, ephemera, photographs, and documents regarding his finances, residence, travels, and affiliations with various organizations and publishers.